We delve into the Guardian and Observer archives to mine excerpts from match reports of memorable Five and Six Nations clashesWales, with a delirious commitment to handling rugby which at times made one wonder at the reality of it all, completely shattered England’s delusions of winning the triple crown and sharing the Championship. It must be said that in the making of this, one of the greatest spectaculars ever seen in a rugby international in the British Isles, England fully played their part. Continue reading...

• Supporter in hospital following attack after Schalke game• City staff have remained in Germany to offer supportA Manchester City supporter is fighting for his life following an alleged assault during the Champions League match against Schalke on Wednesday, German police have confirmed.The unnamed 32-year-old man is in a critical condition after sustaining “massive trauma to his skull and brain” near the away section at the Veltins Arena in Gelsenkirchen. Police Gelsenkirchen added that there was “an acute danger to life”. Continue reading...

Zion Williamson hit the headlines for the wrong reasons as he was forced off with a knee injury after just 33 seconds after his faulty Nike trainer blew out. Williamson was the likely No 1 pick for the NBA Draft in June. Many notable faces watched on including US president Barack Obama and film director Spike Lee. The North Carolina Tar Heels went on to win 88-72 on Wednesday Zion Williamson felled by faulty Nike as North Carolina blast top-ranked Duke Continue reading...

Zenit fans gave a stirring welcome to their team as they approached the stadium on Thursday. Zenit were heading towards the Gazprom Arena in St Petersburg for their Europa League tie with Fenerbahce. A must-win game for them after a 1-0 defeat away, and perhaps it made all the difference the home side going on to win 3-1 on the night Continue reading...

• United have only lost one of the Norwegian’s 13 games in charge• Anthony Martial and Jesse Lingard could return on SundayOle Gunnar Solskjær believes if Manchester United beat Liverpool at Old Trafford on Sunday it will be another step towards making his side one “worthy of club history”.The Norwegian has won 11 of his 13 games in charge, losing just once, to Paris Saint-Germain in last week’s Champions League last-16 opening leg. Three of the victories have been away at Tottenham Hotspur, Arsenal and Chelsea. Continue reading...

• Sanction relates to dealings with foreign players under 18• Chelsea deny wrongdoing and announce they will appealChelsea have been banned from the transfer market for two windows after Fifa found them guilty of a serious and systemic breach of the rules regarding their dealings with foreign players under the age of 18. The club swiftly said they would appeal.The governing body announced the sanction on Friday at the end of a lengthy investigation into the club and how they have registered players at their academy over a number of years. Continue reading...

• ‘With him it’s easier. I hope our fans will understand’• Manager warns performance will need to improve against CityMaurizio Sarri suggested Chelsea will court disaster in Sunday’s Carabao Cup final against Manchester City if they are gripped by a similar bout of nerves to the one that afflicted them against Malmö, and used his players’ jittery start as evidence of Jorginho’s importance to the team.The Premier League club progressed into Friday’s draw for the last 16 of the Europa League, easing their passage beyond Swedish opponents still effectively in pre-season with three second-half goals, though the emphatic nature of the 5-1 aggregate scoreline betrayed the reality of the home side’s anxious start. Continue reading...

Chelsea given two-window transfer banMatch previews: the latest team newsSend your emails to James or tweet @Piercy360 3.59pm GMT The intended Claudio Ranieri bump hasn’t really happened for Fulham, and although his record in the Premier League – W3 D3 L8 – is marginally better than his predecessor Slavisa Jokanovic – W1 D2 L9 – in terms of win percentage across all competitions, it’s exactly the same (20%). The Fulham fans are starting to turn a bit on the loveable Italian which means these quotes may not be viewed as good news, in terms of looking ahead to what increasingly appears a return to the Championship ...Look this question was a long time ago and I said if the chairman is happy, I am happy to stay. I used to work also in the Championship. I won the Championship in Italy, in France. I am ready to fight with the club, I love this club because it is a very, very good club. I am here if the owner wants me, I am ready. 3.45pm GMT Neymar isn’t a happy boy. Not because he remains out injured for Paris Saint-Germain but because he was surprisingly omitted from the top 10 of a Brasil ESPN poll to find the best Brazilian footballer post-Pele. “This business of naming the best Brazilian player post-Pele makes no sense to me,” Neymar told DAZN. Continue reading...

Kusal Perera’s and Oshada Fernando’s last-wicket stand of 78 to beat South Africa last weekend was one of the finest spectacles the game has produced in recent yearsLast Saturday in Christchurch, Martin Guptill thrashed a century for New Zealand in a one-day game against Bangladesh; in Dubai, Shahid Afridi finished off Multan Sultans’ Twenty20 match against Islamabad United with back-to-back sixes; and in Chittagong a young kid called Jamie Smith made a run-a-ball hundred for England Under-19s in a Test against Bangladesh. Cricket’s always on, somewhere or other, one format or another, bat hitting ball like the background tick-tock of a wall clock, something you only really notice when you look at it, catch a fraction of the match in a gif, a clip, a stream, or tweet, or a glance at a scorecard.Amid all the rest of it, South Africa and Sri Lanka were playing in the first Test at Kingsmead in Durban. The match had meandered into a fourth day and it looked as if it was only going one way. South Africa v Sri Lanka isn’t necessarily a series you stop to watch. They have been playing each other for only 26 years and, in South Africa, the contests have been off-puttingly one-sided. Sri Lanka had played 13 Tests there before this series and won only one of them, in 2011, when Kumar Sangakkara and Thilan Samararweera made all the runs and Rangana Herath took most of the wickets. Continue reading...